Superior Man
by E. Little River
Summary: In an alternate universe where Kal-El and Kara Zor-El arrived on earth at the same time, their pods crash in Lake Superior and their lives are a bit different. Kal-El, now known as Clark Kent, is attending University and trying to keep his abilities secret. On top of school and trouble with relationships, he must learn to be Superman, despite his older cousin's words of caution...
1. The Lake

The water invaded her nostrils. Even for a Kryptonian, it was hard to hold her breath for so long. Her smooth fingers dug into the murky mud at the bottom of the lake. Letting out a cry of despair, bubbles swarmed from her mouth to the surface. Kara tore and scraped at the Earth desperately trying to uncover the crashed vessel. For a moment, her vision allowed a glimpse at her baby cousin, trapped inside. She pushed off with her bare feet, sending ripples across the deep lake. The frigid air above cut into her very core.

"No!" She coughed up water and screamed.

Kara's light hair clung to her fair skin, just as the dark navy suit clung tightly to her form, but provided no comfort. No comfort could be provided to a 14 year old child who was far from home. She clutched her slender frame and sobbed. Krypton was gone. She watched it happen. Images of her father, Zor-El danced within the tears forming in her eyes.

"Kal!" the girl bit her quivering lip.

Her face distorted from the fear and the cold.

"Kal-El!" Her vocal chords created a sonic boom that shook the trees that dotted the shoreline and she gasped, shocked at the mysterious strength she could feel inside herself.

Kara Zor-El had dismissed this strength and attributed it to adrenaline, which did indeed flow through her. Diving back into the depths of the lake, the moonlight distorted and dissipated the deeper she pushed herself. Each stroke bringing her closer to him. Closer to her cousin, trapped in an interstellar pod at the base of the lake. Once more, her fingers dug into the ground, but this time, she just kept pushing. Instead of scraping and clawing, she let the mud surround her. Kara slipped under the base of the lake, into the darkness.

Suddenly, the rocket was hurled from the water, the liquid flying into the air with tremendous force as the Kryptonian infant laid in his vehicle, that tumbled and cracked apart as it hit the land. Shattered fragments of metal scattered over the mossy, damp bank of the lake. Then, following the vehicle, soared Kara, who tumbled into the dirt and rolled. Her flesh was bruised and her head pulsed in pain. Water dripped slowly from her mouth as she lay, collapsed. A moment later, her throat spasmed and her suffocating body convulsed. Kara vomited a mixture of mud and water and her chest heaved. Her legs kicked weakly before her eyes rolled back and she fell unconscious.

The small baby Kryptonian a few meters away stirred. His pink lips parted and his eyes peeled open. The cold night air stung and he winced. The child shivered and rolled back and forth in the broken vehicle. Smoke billowed from the alien vessel, which was easily spotted by a man and his wife, who were driving along a nearby road.

"John! What do you suppose that is?"

"Oh no, could be a forest fire- Looks like it started around the lake!"

The Kents drove down the road towards the wreckage… The wheels of fate were put in motion, as Kal-El would soon be discovered… but not yet revealed to the world.


	2. The Knife

"Lois! Hang on, Lois!" The twenty year old Journalism student waved and jogged over to Lois Lane.

Her dark hair gently framed her face. Blinking, she took a moment to register who was calling to her.

"Oh, hey Clark." She smiled softly, her ruby lips curling to reveal smooth white bone.

"Did you see my text about the project?"

"Yeah, about that Clark," Lois responded, walking along beside the tall, glasses-wearing young man, "The whole financial situation is taken care of."

"Oh- That is awesome, I thought we had to organize some serious fundraising." Clark Kent adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose and stepped swiftly.

Getting ahead of Lois Lane, he stopped to open and hold the door to the building for her.

"Ah, thanks." Lois nodded and stepped inside.

"So, how did you get the money?" Clark leaped forward to catch back up with Lois as they strolled down the hallways.

"Oh, I can talk to you about it later, Clark. But hey, no worries, right?" She beamed and turned, giving him a friendly nudge on the shoulder.

"Yeah, no worries. Thanks, Lois-" Clark smiled at her.

Adjusting the strap of her satchel, Lois nodded and interrupted his train of thought, "Anyway, I have to get to class. I will see you later, ok?"

Clark nodded, and waved to his classmate. His cheeks flushed a bit as he watched her run off to her classroom. Rubbing his head, Clark sighed, daydreaming momentarily. Suddenly, his phone rang. Retrieving his phone from his pocket, Clark slid his finger across the screen and held it beside his head.

"Hey, Kara." Clark spoke into the microphone.

On the other end of the call was his older cousin. The 14 year old Kryptonian had grown up to be a 33 year old businesswoman.

"Clark, I wanted to check in with you, kiddo." She began.

"How are your studies?"

"Classes are going well, I am succeeding in all my work. Also, I just found out that the money for the class project is all taken care of." He answered, smiling as some students walked by him.

"That is good to hear, kiddo. Isn't that the project you are doing with your little friend Lois?" Kara teased him as she filed some papers and tucked her phone between her head and shoulder.

"L-lois? Well, yes. I mean-" Clark became a bit flustered and backed up to the wall.

"Relax, relax." Kara laughed and shook her head as she walked back to her desk and sat down. "I am only messing with you a bit, kiddo. You can tell me all about her at Christmas."

Clark awkwardly nibbled his cheek and fixed a hair that had strayed to his forehead. "Oh- Alright."

"Anyway, I wanted to make sure there have not been any incidents with your abilities?"

Clark blinked slowly at the mention of his Kryptonian powers. Other than Mr. and Mrs. Kent, his cousin Kara was the only person who understood his situation. In fact, Kara knew his personal trouble better than anyone else. Clark had paused before answering, "No, I have not done anything. The glasses you gave me definitely help me to not accidentally use x-ray vision."

"Good, good. Just remember to stay away from those sports, kiddo. I know you feel like you can control your strength, but we have to be careful, alright?" Kara reminded him.

"Yes, I know, Kara. I will be careful." Clark sighed softly and leaned against the wall.

"Ok, I will let you get to it. Bye." Kara bid him farewell.

"Goodbye." Clark echoed her condolences and hung up.

His blue eyes darted to the screen and he dismissed some notifications before checking the time and sliding his phone back into his pocket.

As Clark headed to the stairwell to get to his own class, he heard something. A violent growl of a voice got Clark's attention. Coming from the basement level was a thud and the sound of a switchblade flicking open.

"Where's the money for Duke?!" The mysterious voice asked and Clark ducked down, removing his glasses to peer through the floor at the situation below.

One man had a knife at the throat of another man. The victim shook in fear.

"L-look, I don't have the money on me, but I swear, it is all at my place!"

"Duke don't take kindly to being cheated, man!"

Clark's mind raced as he wondered what he could do. There was someone in danger at the very moment, and he could not bring himself to just do nothing and hide. Clenching his jaw, the young man slipped the navy blue hood of his jacket over his face, shrouding his face in darkness. Clark grimaced and whispered to himself… "This looks like a job for me."

He walked down the stairs and stopped when he came to the two men having an altercation.

"Hey, don't come any closer! Get the hell outta here!" The man clutching the knife ordered.

Clark put his hands in the air slowly, "Woah there, take it easy… Nobody needs to get, hurt, ok?"

The man being threatened nodded in agreement, and his attacker moved away from him, pointing the knife at Clark, "This is Duke's business, it has NOTHIN' to do with you!"

Clark nodded slowly, "Look, I am just passing by. What do you say the three of us just calm down, head our separate ways, and pretend this never happened, huh?"

His attempt to diffuse the heat of the situation failed. The criminal rolled his switchblade between his fingers and lunged at Clark. The steel sunk through the navy sweatshirt and bounced back off of the Kryptonian's abdomen. The blade slipped back through the other end of the man's fist, slicing his flesh from his own force.

"Aagh!" The man cried in pain as blood dripped down his fingers and the knife, which now had a bent tip, clattered to the ground.

"W-what the hell? Some kinda body armor- I am outta here!" He yelled, and scrambled away, leaving the knife behind.

Clark committed the man's face to memory, and turned his attention to the victim. "Are you alright, sir?"

"F-freak!" The man pointed at Clark with a trembling finger and ran off down the hall, fleeing the scene as well.

Clark sighed, slipped a finger idly through the little hole in his hoodie, which he promptly removed. "This is terrible…"

Glancing at the knife, Clark picked it up carefully with a handkerchief. The fabric easily folded around the bloodied weapon, and Clark proceeded to pack it away in his backpack, along with his hoodie. He quickly bolted up the stairs to get to his class. However, it was difficult for him to calm down right after such a situation.

"Hey man, did you lose your glasses again?" Clark's classmate asked, dragging him from his thoughts.

Clark gasped, "Oh right, I almost forgot."

He retrieved his glasses from his pocket and donned the square frames.

"You forgot… to wear your glasses?" The other person raised an eyebrow, adjusting in their seat.

Clark laughed awkwardly, "Yeah, it happens sometimes."

His classmate just shook their head and looked down at their computer screen. Clark directed his attention, or at least most of it, to his professor, for the time being. After all, class was about to begin.


	3. The Suit

His fingers slipped around the steel lever and twisted, being careful, as always, not to use too much force. The knob turned and the door to his dormitory swung open. The walls of his room were bare. The light flickered on as he tapped the switch, illuminating this. There was a desk and a simple bed. He plugged his phone into a cord on the desk and sat down. On the desk, among the pencils and books, sat a single framed photograph. Kara, Clark, Jonathan, and Martha, all standing together. Martha with her arms around Kara, and Jonathan lightly rubbing the top of Clark's head. Their happy family had taken the picture on Kara's last day living at home. When she turned 19, Kara had moved away. Clark was only 6, but his older cousin returned often to visit. Clark thumbed over the edge of the frame, recalling the many hours he spent in the rural town of smallville. He had often wondered how differently his life would have turned out if the Kents had not been visiting family up north when he and Kara had apparently landed on earth. Kara insisted on telling Clark the truth about where he came from when he was 14. The young kryptonian flopped onto his bed. He tucked himself into a ball as his mind wandered.

From thoughts of his family, Clark considered the future of his family. He realized that one day, he would probably be the last living member of his family. This thought was disturbing for a moment, but he shortly shook it from his mind. Clark considered the possibility of growing a larger family. His mind danced around the idea of marriage. He did not want to admit it to himself that for 2 years, he had harbored exponentially increasing affection for Lois Lane. Clark sighed as he wondered what to do about the dangerous activity on campus. He felt a pang of worry in the back of his mind, considering the possibility of Lois being attacked by someone with a knife.

"Alright, let's find out who you are…" Clark grumbled and retrieved the bloody knife from his bag.

Gazing at it with a critical eye, his special vision allowed him to see the fingerprints and distinct DNA on the switchblade. There were trace amounts of other blood on the knife as well. Clark came to the conclusion that since the attacker's blood was not the only pattern, the knife must have cut other people before. This was no isolated incident. Clark nodded his head and blinked.

"Whoever this Duke person is, that guy works for him and he is a dangerous individual…" Clark muttered to himself.

Silently, he pondered how he could have not noticed the criminal activity before. There had to be some way to track down the people who were invading his school, but Clark did not know where to begin. He was no detective, but he was not a fool. Clark knew he needed help. However, Kara had specifically told him to keep himself a secret. Clark had to hide in plain sight, as she warned him. On occasion, he would question why humans were not able to handle the idea of extraterrestrial life, but his cousin would always explain in such detail that he could not possibly debate it with her. Clark sighed and thought of his other family, on Krypton. There were so many people that were close to him, and yet, never more far away. They were all long gone. Clark was one of the last Kryptonians, but without Kara's approval, he felt entirely alone. Having looked up to her his entire life, Clark felt almost betrayed.

"I should not have to pretend to be something I am not… Not when it means standing by and letting criminals hurt people."

Clark hopped off of his bed and slipped his sneakers back on. Quickly, to the wooded area near campus, he jogged. It was impulsive, for sure, but Clark needed to go some place that he did not feel confined. Leaves crunched beneath his feet as the young man ran a hand through his dark hair. He took a deep breath and shook the warnings of Kara from his mind. Bending his knees, the planet bowed to him. Gravity bent to his very will, and Clark pushed off. In an instant, there was a sonic boom, and the young man found himself soaring through the atmosphere. Wind whipped at Clark's face and his hair shook from the velocity. Clark smiled softly, his lips curling into a peaceful expression. Flying made him feel closer to his ancestors. Despite knowing little to nothing about Krypton, peering out into the cosmos filled him with hope. Clark's blue eyes shimmered as he turned on his back and gazed up and stretched. He hurled rapidly through the air and turned his head to glance down. There were the massive lakes he was heading toward. Diving through the sky, Clark outstretched his arms and tensed as he brought himself to a stop, crouching at the edge of Lake Superior.

He blinked, gazing across the body of water. The blue surface shined as the sun reflected upon the dancing ripples. Clark swallowed, looking around to be sure he was alone, before he pulled off his glasses and clothing. Eventually, he was left in his scarlet briefs, and nothing else. Solemnly, he launched himself into the water. There was a massive and sudden splash that dissipated after a minute. Clark swam deep, to the bottom of the lake, using his x-ray vision. He eventually found what he was looking for. His intact cousin's pod. Clark's vessel that had been damaged was brought to the Kent's barn, and remained there ever since. However, Kara had left her pod at the bottom of the lake all these years. Over time, it had been buried by shifting dirt. Clark cracked his neck and his eyes rolled back. Bright energy and plasma burst from his eyes. The entire lake flashed with red light as he superheated the earth that covered the pod. The dirt flew everywhere, scorched and dispersed. Clark managed to get down deep enough to grab the vessel and lift it. He pulled it to the surface.

The Kryptonian ship was filled with water and mud, and Clark nibbled the inside of his cheek as he wondered where to take the small pod. It would need to be somewhere far away. Dragging the pod onshore, Clark exhaled some warm air onto his own body, drying himself off. Quickly donning his clothing, he lifted the pod up into the air. Some of the water started splashing out of the vehicle, and Clark knew he could not drip water all over. He set the pod back down and pursed his lips. The cool air did not bother him, but cold would certainly solve his dilemma. Taking a deep breath, Clark pursed his lips and puffed. Freezing air burst forth, turning the water and the Kryptonian tech to ice. He then proceeded to carry the iced over hunk of metal far away. Clark could not think of anywhere that humans would not see him, except for one. Clark headed for Antarctica.

Dropping onto the icy, frozen wasteland, Clark set down Kara's pod and began heating the ice. Once he had finally gotten the pod nice and dry, Clark began carefully taking it apart. Eventually, he got at the internal computer system and electronics. Laying everything out on the ice, Clark looked everything over. Wind whipped at his skin.

"Kara always said that the pod computer had information about our homeworld, but mine was broken. Could hers still work?" Clark wondered aloud.

The computer parts were absolutely destroyed, to Clark's disappointment. He sighed, kneeling in defeat. As he rummaged through the ship, he found a small box. Tilting his head, he opened the curious container and reached inside. His fingers curled around a soft material, and he pulled it out. He narrowed his gaze and spread out the fabric on the ice.

"What… is this?" Clark's eyes widened as he realized what he was holding. A dark navy blue suit lay before him. The material was extremely stretchy, but Clark could feel how sturdy it was. As he stretched the material in his hands, Clark realized that he could not tear it. Even with his strength, the material was invulnerable to him. Looking down the front, Clark observed the one part of the stretchy Kryptonian suit that was not blue. A maroon emblem. A metallic design in red that stood out among the blue. Clark traced his fingers over the curvy shape. It looked like an S on a shield, but not quite the same. Clark bit his lip, holding back tears. He took in a breath of the fresh antarctic air.

"This… This is all that remains of my people's culture?" He grimaced.

He packed the suit back into the box and solemnly levitated up off the ice. His head hung low, having found nothing that he searched for. Clark exhaled, disappointed, especially when he considered how foolish it was to think he might find some kind of message from his ancestors. He only wanted to find a bit of hope. However, Clark had only obtained an article of Kryptonian clothing.

Eventually, he returned to his dormitory and tucked the alien box into his closet before picking up his phone from the desk. There was one unread text message. Clark wondered if it was Lois for a moment, but his hopes were dashed once again as he saw that it was simply spam. Clark swallowed and stuffed the phone into his pocket.

"So… I am on my own." He mumbled, glaring at the bloody knife.

Clark crossed his arms and turned to the door. He was studying investigative journalism. Who was to say that Clark could not figure out who Duke was and stop the criminals himself? His blue eyes shined with a new internal fire. Clark knew that other people would be in danger if they got involved. Nobody would stand up and put a stop to it… Even Clark's cousin, his last blood relative, told him not to do what he believed to be the right thing.

"This is something I have to do." He grabbed the doorknob and pulled the door open.

He smiled to himself and stepped outside, full of ambition. Just after he shook his head and laughed quietly, Clark started to head out of the building and onto the campus. He was not yet sure how he was going to find out about the illegal underground activity. However, he knew where to start…


End file.
